Fifty-four percent of those questioned refused to buy anything labelled GMO, though 55% failed even to interpret the initials.

Those that did recognize GMO as genetically modified organisms were classed as the well-educated of Moscow and St. Petersburg, returning figures of 71% and 70% in the poll results.

But consumer rejection among the food shelves went even further, say experts from the All-Russia Public Opinion Reserch Center WCIOM. Half of the respondents said they would not even buy preserved food products while 40% and 38% disapproved of food dye and even soy.

One in three refused to buy foods containing palm oil, flavor enhancers or antioxidants while a quarter said they would never buy emulsified products or those containing sodium nitrate. Salty food was rejected by just 15%, the pollsters said.

The survey sought views of 1,600 men and women in 130 cities of 42 Russian regions. The margin of error did not exceed 3.4%.